In the art of supporting articles sawhorses are well known. For many years carpenters, plumbers, electricians, and other skilled tradesman have made sawhorses out of 2.times.4's and the like. Such sawhorses, although simple to build on a job site, are heavy, bulky, unwieldy, difficult to transport, difficult to store, and quickly wear out.
Known to the art are several types of advanced sawhorses. These sawhorses utilize the same general design of those sawhorses created on job sites, however, many improvements have been made over the years in the art. For example, Jones, U.S. Pat. No. 3,446,312, discloses a structural support having a pair of end stands which may be utilized to removably secure each end of a conventional 2.times.4. While the Jones device allows for replacement of a worn cross member 10, assembly and disassembly are complicated and labor intensive.
Another improved sawhorse is disclosed by Chaput, U.S. Pat. No. 4,030,565. Chaput teaches a transportable sawhorse package with a ridge board and two pairs of legs. While this device is an improvement over the prior art, in that it is somewhat more easily assembled and disassembled for transportation, it still requires assembly and disassembly of five separate components.
The art was advanced further by Hall, U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,386. Hall discloses a folding utility horse having a cross member having four legs pivotally attached thereto. However, this device still requires a user to unfasten each leg from the cross member, extend the leg into position, and secure each leg into its extended support position. This process must be reversed for storage and transportation. Additionally, while the Hall device is an improvement over the prior art it utilizes complex and expensive two axis leg joints. For this reason the purchase price of the Hall device simply exceeds the devices value for many tradesman.
Finally, Deitz, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,385 discloses a fold together saw bench. The device disclosed by Deitz utilizes a hinged cross member which allows the device to be folded substantially flat. However, although the device may be folded, it is not easily transported since its legs are always in an extended position.
Those concerned with these and other problems recognize the need for an improved "COLLAPSIBLE SAWHORSE APPARATUS."